ARCHIMANDRITE VASILEIOS OF MT. ATHOS AT SERBIAN CATHEDRAL IN NEW YORK

Created on Tuesday, 27 January 2015 11:14

Archimandrite Vasileios (Gondikakis) gave a lecture at St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Manhattan on Tuesday, January 27, 2015, the feast day of St. Sava the first Archbishop of Serbia. His Grace Bishop Maxim of Western America offered a Serbian translation to Fr. Vasileios’ talk.

Church Slava Celebration in Phoenix

Created on Sunday, 25 January 2015 14:59

On Sunday, January 25, His Grace Bishop Dr Maxim visited the St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church in Phoenix, Arizona, for their Patron Saint Day Celebration. On this beautiful, sunny Arizona day Divine Liturgy was celebrated by His Grace along with V. Rev. Lazar Vasiljevic, V. Rev. Stanislav Djuric, Rev. Deacon Zoran Aleksic and host priest V. Rev. Dragomir Tuba, with a great number of faithful people present. His Grace tonsured Michael Devic and Jovan Tuba to the rank of a Reader.

The Eve of Theophany at St. Steven's Cathedral

Created on Sunday, 18 January 2015 18:07

Eve of Theophany: January 18, 2015

For the first time in six years, the Eve of the Theophany of our Lord Jesus Christ (Holy Cross Day) fell on a Sunday. His Grace, Bishop Maxim, celebrated the Liturgy at Saint Steven’s Cathedral with the Cathedral clergy – Protopresbyter Stavrophor Nicholas Ceko, Dean, Protopresbyter Stavrophor Ilija Daikovich, Presbyter Norman Kosanovich – and the Diocesan Deacon, Zoran Aleksic. Near the conclusion of the Liturgy, the Altar servers led the clergy and parishioners in a procession out of the church and to the social court, where a bubbling water fountain and several receptacles of water were prepared in anticipation of the service of the Great Blessing of Water, taking place under a crystal-blue sky and in the comfortable warmth of a sunny January morning. As the Theophany troparion was sung, Bishop Maxim generously showered the gathered faithful with the blessed water, much to the delight of all the children! At the conclusion, everyone received a hand-sized Holy Water bottle, filled and labeled for use at home. The children then assembled to rehearse the upcoming St. Sava program until it was time for Bishop Maxim to bless the day’s luncheon and fellowship.

Archpastoral visit to the faithful in Eugene

Created on Saturday, 10 January 2015 14:15

On Saturday, January 10th, 2015, on the occasion of his archpastoral visit to the faithful in Oregon, His Grace Bishop Maxim traveled from Portland to Eugene to celebrate the Hierarchal Divine Liturgy at St. John the Wonderworker Serbian Orthodox Church. Traveling with him were Fr. Milan Unkovic and a number of the faithful of St. Stephen the Protomartyr and Archdeacon of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Portland. Also traveling with His Grace was the diocesan deacon, Deacon Zoran Aleksic. Together, they concelebrated with the clergy of St. John, Fr. Daniel Mackay and Deacon Stephen Dyer.

As the first Saturday after Nativity, the joyous afterfeast of Nativity amplified the already festive solemnity of the Divine Liturgy wherein Christians experience the unity for which our Lord prayed in the hours before His Passion. After the Liturgy, the parish hosted a generous feast for all, after which His Grace sat with the faithful and answered questions that ranged from inquiries about the Divine Services, how to raise children in the Church, and how to prepare for Holy Communion. His Grace's answers were comprehensive, theological, and always respected the freedom of the human person. For example, at one point he noted how, while we always respect the canons, that which is canonical can be uncanonical if it is imposed in a tyrannical fashion. His discourse, which was much appreciated by the faithful, was a celebration of the freedom that our Lords bestows us in His perfect Love.

After the feast, His Grace toured the work space of a local artist developing some iconography for the parish. He visited a sick parishioner at her home, offering consolation and blessings, and then he returned to Portland.